Riley enlisted in the Civil War, 16Jul 1862, serving in Co. D 14th Reg., Inf. CSA. He already had five children, Andrew was the oldest.
He was wounded at Sharpsburg, VA. After he was wounded, he was captured by the Union Army. He was so badly wounded, he was released by the Union Army. After he signed a statement that he would never bear arms against the North. He then went back to his outfit, and was given a job making neetsfoot oil and paid $7 a month. Neetsfoot oil was used for oiling the saddles, bridles, and boots.
He told of crawling over dead bodies on the battlefield trying to find a good pair of boots as the Confederate Army was in very poor condition and his boots were so worn out that his feet were bleeding. As he attempted to pull a boot off a dead Union soldier, the leg came off too.
One time he had a good friend that got hit with a bullet in the head. His brains fell partly out on the ground. Riley dragged him to a creek where he dipped his head in the water to wash the dirt off his brain and pushed them back into his head. The man lived and Forest remembered the man when he was a boy but said he was never quite normal.
he was happy when the war was over and he could go home to his family. He often told his grandson Forest how terrible war was and how so many innocent people were killed and how their families had to suffer.
He became the father of eight more children. He was a very religious man. He carried his Bible with him most of the time and knew most of the scriptures by heart. He walked many miles each Sunday to attend church.
He died still suffering from his battle wounds which hastened his death. He made his living as a farmer.
1910 census shows b. as about 1859
1910 census shows b. as about 68
never married
prob. md. D S Moore
never married